Mai Kai

The Mai Kai is a fabulous Polynesian restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. They opened in 1956 and despite changes of ownership and several hurricanes, they're still around.

In the 50's, Polynesian restaurants were all the rage. Places like Trader Vic's, Don the Beachcomber and the Kon Tiki chain were some of the biggest. Most of the old Trader Vic's and all of the Kon Tiki's are now gone, but the Mai Kai remains as a stunning example of Polynesian pop culture from the 50's.

In an age where getting a good drink is as hard as winning the lottery, the Mai Kai bar staff make drinks that pay a lot of attention to detail. They use mostly top shelf liquor, AND they don't skimp on the presentation. A good cocktail should always have a good presentation. Their drink recipes have changed little in the past 53 years.

Then there's the Polynesian floor shows, complete with hula dancers, fire jugglers and a full Hawaiian band. Where else can you find a dinner show like that? The decor is like tiki heaven..carvings from notable tiki carvers like Barney West, not to mention original velvet paintings by Edward Leeteg. Sit anywhere in the Mai Kai and look up...any direction you look is a photo waiting to be taken.

I go to the Mai Kai once per year when I attend The Hukilau. This past year I decided to try to get some really good pictures. The problem was the Mai Kai was beyond packed and I had a little mini-tripod that could barely hold my D80. To get a good picture at the Mai Kai requires a fairly long shutter speed because the restaurant is dimly lit. The gardens behind the restaurant are a great place to see some vinatge tiki carvings, but again the lighting is the main issue. I did mange to get a few really good shots. The one above was taken at 1.3 sec at f5.6, 18mm and the ISO was up to 500. You cant tell from this picture, but theres a lot of grain in the photo. Even at ISO 500, the D80 can't handle these low light situations and this is the biggest reason why I hate this camera (more about that another time). This would have been an absolutely beautiful picture had it not been for the grain. I might have even sold a few of these.

This one was taken inside where its even darker:




6 sec. exposure at F8, ISO at 500 again, same lens set at 31mm. This is what I mean by any direction you look is a photo. This was taken from my table looking up to my left.

Here's another view from my table looking up straight ahead. 6 sec. exposure at F8, ISO 500.



Another outdoor shot, 1.3 sec at f5.6, 55mm focal length this time, ISO 500:



The Hukilau is taking place again this June. I'm considering not bringing my camera this time because it was such a pain to carry around. On the other hand, I would love to get more pics at the Mai Kai. They came very close to closing last year so who knows how much longer they're going to be around.